1789~1815Ayushi, Rhiannon, Sadie 'A celebrated people lose dignity upon a closer view.'~Napoleon Bonaparte
Important Terms:
Taille- This is the chief revenue-generating tax in pre-revolutionary France. It was paid only by the Third Estate, the people who earned the least money. The higher had special exemptions for this.
Estates- These are the classes of people in France. The first estate was the clergy. The second estate was the nobles and the higher ranked officers. The third rank was the peasants and middle class people.
Sans-Culottes- this was a group of revolutionary people who couldn't afford fine clothing. hence, their nickname was "without pants" or "without breeches" because the fashion of that time was to wear short breeches.
Electors- this term refers to the adult men that were allowed to vote in an election. at this time, women were not allowed to vote or have any sort of political power.
Relics of Feudalism- These were the remnants of the time of feudalism. Because of this, the aristocrats still had privileges that the common people didn't have
Bourgeoisie- this term refers to those who were middle class people, the merchants and artisans, etc. They paid a majority of the taxes.
The Bastille- this was the prison and armory that was stormed by revolutionaries searching for weapons and revenge in return for the abuses heaped upon them by the government.
Faction- This term refers to opposing forces in an argument or other disagreement. In this case, the term refers to the Girondins and the Mountains.
Coup d'état- this is the seizure of power by force. In this manner, Napoleon was able to seize control from the Directory and establish the beginnings of his empire.
Consulate- This term refers to the type of government created after the fall of the Directory. It consisted of several consuls, but Napoleon really had all the power.
Important People:
Louis XVI- This man was the person who destabilized France enough so that a revolution became a feasible option. He raised taxes, caused inflation, and overall caused quality of life to go down.
Maximilian Robespierre- This was one of the main leaders of the revolution. After the monarchy fell, he took power and dechristianized France in order to take power from the church.
Jean-Paul Marat- This was another of the main leaders of the French revolution. He was bedridden because of a skin disease he'd gotten from sleeping in the sewers. He wrote inflammatory letters to publish in his newspaper "The People's Friend".
George Danton- This was the last of the main leaders of the French revolution. He started the Reign of Terror, which was then taken over by Maximilian Robespierre.
Marie Antoinette- This was the wife of King Louis XVI. She was hated by her people because she was wasteful and because she was trying to help her Austrian family invade to stop the revolution.
Napoleon Bonaparte- This was the man who took over after the Directory fell. He was famed for his military and tactical skill. He also wrote his Napoleonic Code, otherwise known as the Civil Code, which curtailed the rights of women.
Olympe de Gouges- This woman was one who fought for the rights of women as French citizens. She wrote plays, pamphlets, and documents about women and what rights they should be allowed to have.
Louis XIV- This was the grandfather of Louis XVI. During his reign, the power of France was increased until it was a world power and had an impact on all of Europe.
Anne-Louise-Germaine de Staële- This was a woman constantly in conflict with Napoleon. She believed that women had a large impact on the world, whereas Napoleon believed that the greatest woman was "the one who had the most children".
Duke of Wellington- This man was the unexpected downfall of Napoleon. He was the commander of the Prussian and British army at Waterloo that defeated Napoleon's army and banished him to St.Helena, an island in the South Atlantic Ocean.
Overview During the year 1789, two very important things happened: the beginning of the new United States and the French Revolution. Unlike the American Revolution, French Revolution was very bloody and complex. The French society was based and divided into three estates. The first estate consisted of the clergies, who were exempt from the taille, or the taxes, and owned 10 percent of the land. The second estate was made up of the nobility who owned about 325 to 30 percent of the land. Similar to the clergies, they didn’t pay the taxes. The third estate was composed of the commoners of the society, and they owned about 65 percent of the land. This estate was broken up into more sections such as the bourgeoisie. Members of the middles class were unhappy with the privileges held by the nobles, also called relics of feudalism. Inflation rose and more and more people got on the edge of revolting. Louis XVI, grandson of Louis XIV, was forced to call the meeting of the Estates-General, which had not met since 1614. The meeting was held at Versailles in 1789 was composed of representatives from the three estates from the French Society. Obviously, the third estate was outvoted against the first and the second estate for not having taxes. Irritated by the nobilities, the third estate formed the National Assembly. When Louis XVI shut that down, they swore to an oath they made up called the Tennis Court Oath. The king tried to stop this from happening when a bunch of commoners stormed the Bastille. The National Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. But this limited the power of women. One woman refused to accept this. Olympe de Gouges wrote plays and pamphlets and penned A Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen. Of course the National Assembly ignored her demands. The war had eventually spread to Austria and Prussia. The sans-culottes were started to be drafted because of the lack of men.
The Paris Commune had forced the Legislative Assembly to call a National Convention. George Danton led this convention and sought revenge on those who had aided the king and resisted the popular will. Many other leaders emerged including Jean-Paul Marat and Maximilien Robespierre. The convention soon split into faction called the Girondins and Mountains. These factions were both part of a club called Jacobin. These two groups were successful in beheading the king and queen Marie Antoinette. They soon made a special committee of 12 called the Committee of Public Safety, led by Robespierre. This time period was known as the Reign of Terror. Revolutionaries would execute anyone who bothered them from countless women to children. When the terror ended, the National Assembly reduced the power of the Committee of Public Safety. They made a directory which was chosen by electors. In 1799, a coup d’état toppled the Directory.
Napoleon Bonaparte came in power in 1799, right after the coup d’état by the consulate. He crowned his wife Josephine empress after he seized the crown from Pope Pius VII. He made peace with the church and made a set of laws called the Civil Code or the Napoleonic Code. This hadn’t helped much because it did the same thing that the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen did: limit the power of . Another prominent writer Anne-Louise-Germaine de Staële revolted against this rule, but with no success. Napoleon’s empire reached an enormous size by 1815. But Russia did not want to be part of the Continental System that was set up by Napoleon. Britain’s survival and nationalism were the key factors that overthrew Napoleon's empire. He was banished to Elba but returned back in 1813. If he had tried enough and not let power get in the way of ruling, he would have really truly been the long lived emperor he wanted to be. For More Information:
If you are interested in learning more about Napoleon Bonaparte's life, this website contains a history of his lineage, childhood, and later years.
If you are interested in learning more about the French Revolution, this site contains a wide variety of information about the causes, leaders, and consequences of the French Revolution.
If you are interested in learning more about the life of George Danton, this website contains a history of his childhood, career, and later execution.
If you are interested in learning more about the life of Marie Antoinette, this website contains information about her childhood, later life and execution.
If you are interested in learning more about battles of the French Revolution, this website contains a list of battles and information about each of them.
If you are interested in learning more about the Reign of Terror led by Robespierre, this site contains information about the Committee of Public Safety and its effects on the people of France.
If you are interested in learning more about the dechristianization of France, this website contains information about what actions were taken to dechristianize France and their effects.
If you are interested in learning more about contents of the Declaration of the Rights of Man, this website contains the text of the document in English.
If you are interested in learning more about the three Estates of France, this website contains information about who made up the three estates and what their roles as French citizens were.
If you are interested in learning more about the Bastille, this website contains information about the layout of the Bastille, the prisoners that were kept there, and the invasion of the Bastille that started the revolution.
TIMELINE:
1789
French Revolution begins
1791
Olympe de Gouges writes declaration of rights for women
1792
National Convention establishes French Republic
1793
King Louis XVI is executed
1795
The Directory is formed
1799
Napoleon participates in coup d’état that topples French government
1789~1815Ayushi, Rhiannon, Sadie
'A celebrated people lose dignity upon a closer view.'~Napoleon Bonaparte
Important Terms:
Important People:
Overview
During the year 1789, two very important things happened: the beginning of the new United States and the French Revolution. Unlike the American Revolution, French Revolution was very bloody and complex. The French society was based and divided into three estates. The first estate consisted of the clergies, who were exempt from the taille, or the taxes, and owned 10 percent of the land. The second estate was made up of the nobility who owned about 325 to 30 percent of the land. Similar to the clergies, they didn’t pay the taxes. The third estate was composed of the commoners of the society, and they owned about 65 percent of the land. This estate was broken up into more sections such as the bourgeoisie. Members of the middles class were unhappy with the privileges held by the nobles, also called relics of feudalism. Inflation rose and more and more people got on the edge of revolting. Louis XVI, grandson of Louis XIV, was forced to call the meeting of the Estates-General, which had not met since 1614. The meeting was held at Versailles in 1789 was composed of representatives from the three estates from the French Society. Obviously, the third estate was outvoted against the first and the second estate for not having taxes. Irritated by the nobilities, the third estate formed the National Assembly. When Louis XVI shut that down, they swore to an oath they made up called the Tennis Court Oath. The king tried to stop this from happening when a bunch of commoners stormed the Bastille. The National Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen. But this limited the power of women. One woman refused to accept this. Olympe de Gouges wrote plays and pamphlets and penned A Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen. Of course the National Assembly ignored her demands. The war had eventually spread to Austria and Prussia. The sans-culottes were started to be drafted because of the lack of men.
The Paris Commune had forced the Legislative Assembly to call a National Convention. George Danton led this convention and sought revenge on those who had aided the king and resisted the popular will. Many other leaders emerged including Jean-Paul Marat and Maximilien Robespierre. The convention soon split into faction called the Girondins and Mountains. These factions were both part of a club called Jacobin. These two groups were successful in beheading the king and queen Marie Antoinette. They soon made a special committee of 12 called the Committee of Public Safety, led by Robespierre. This time period was known as the Reign of Terror. Revolutionaries would execute anyone who bothered them from countless women to children. When the terror ended, the National Assembly reduced the power of the Committee of Public Safety. They made a directory which was chosen by electors. In 1799, a coup d’état toppled the Directory.
Napoleon Bonaparte came in power in 1799, right after the coup d’état by the consulate. He crowned his wife Josephine empress after he seized the crown from Pope Pius VII. He made peace with the church and made a set of laws called the Civil Code or the Napoleonic Code. This hadn’t helped much because it did the same thing that the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen did: limit the power of . Another prominent writer Anne-Louise-Germaine de Staële revolted against this rule, but with no success. Napoleon’s empire reached an enormous size by 1815. But Russia did not want to be part of the Continental System that was set up by Napoleon. Britain’s survival and nationalism were the key factors that overthrew Napoleon's empire. He was banished to Elba but returned back in 1813. If he had tried enough and not let power get in the way of ruling, he would have really truly been the long lived emperor he wanted to be.
For More Information:
TIMELINE: